Officers were called to investigate a disturbance at an apartment complex Sunday night where they found Walker’s body with knife wounds. According to her sister, Walker worked at the front office of the apartment complex.

It’s unclear what the motive was but police are investigating allegations made by family members of the 16-year-old boy who say Walker attempted to sexually assault the teen. Sgt. Nikki Woodrow with the Wichita Police Department told The Advocate they weren’t investigating Walker’s death as a hate crime. The suspect’s name hasn’t been released because of his age and police expect he’ll be charged as a juvenile.

“[She] wanted to get a degree in psychology or social work to try to become a counselor to help other people try to get through some of the same struggles [she] had been through,” Walker’s friend, only identified as Victoria said.

She also told the news station Walker was being constantly harassed at the apartment complex and around Wichita.

Social media posts made by friends describe Walker as someone who “kept us laughing all the time” and a GoFundMe page allegedly setup by friends to help with funeral costs calls Walker “a loving, playful spirit who only wanted the best for others.”

Walker is the tenth transgender person to be killed this year, most of whom are black trans women. Just last month, two black trans women were murdered: Shante Thompson was fatally shot in Houston and Keyonna Blakeney was murdered in Washington D.C. They follow Monica Loera, Jasmine Sierra, Maya Young, Kourtney Yochum and Shante Thompson, genderfluid teen Kedarie/Kandicee Johnson, and trans men Kayden Clarke and Demarkis Stansberry of trans people killed this year.

Yvonne S. Marquez is a lesbian journalist and former Autostraddle senior editor living in Dallas, TX. She writes about social justice, politics, activism and other things dear to her queer Latina heart. Yvonne was born and raised in the Rio Grande Valley. Follow her on Instagram or Twitter. Read more of her work at yvonnesmarquez.com.

I read somewhere else that the 16 year-old was being misgendered by media and police and identifies as a woman. Is there any further evidence of this? While it is still tragic, it certainly does change the story.